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MIAMI — Everything about a stadium opening is a show, and so in the blur of Inter Miami’s Saturday night, speeches came, music blared, fireworks exploded, Marc Anthony sang a spectacular national anthem and part-owner David Beckham hugged a lot of people at journey’s end.
Meanwhile, the only star whose show wasn’t choreographed waited. Lionel Messi’s name was already in lights on a stadium so unfinished that a permit to play Saturday’s game against Austin FC was just acquired Friday.
“Leo Messi Stand,” was a priority. It was finished and polished, a midfield section of seats bookended by his No. 10.
And so when Messi came flying through the middle of the penalty box early in the game and headed in a tying goal against Austin it meant a good night was on the way to being complete. That’s the moment this stadium really needed to open, Messi’s seal of approval.
The happiest beginning was offered, too. Luis Suarez, who scored in the 82nd minute, took the rebound of Messi’s free kick in the 90th minute and scored the would-be winning goal. But it was waved off for offsides and the night ended 2-2.
“We could’ve been better,’’ coach Javier Mascherano said.
Thus began Inter Miami moving to Miami after five years in Fort Lauderdale. Sort of. The team still trains in Fort Lauderdale, meaning its facilities and most players’ homes remain in Broward and Palm Beach.
It just plays games in Miami now, like the geographical reverse of the University of Miami football team training south in Coral Gables and playing further north at Hard Rock Stadium.
“We’re finally home,’’ team owner Jorge Mas said in Spanish before the game to the sold-out crowd of 26,700.
He’s a Miami guy, who wanted his team in Miami, and spent eight years making it happen. Beckham started on the case 13 years ago when he claimed Miami as the team he would be part-owner in as his MLS contract allowed.
“We had no name,’’ Beckham said to before Saturday’s game. “We had no fans. We had no stadium. Today, I stand in our new home, we are champions of the MLS and we have the best player in the game playing here in Miami.
He looked at the scene before him.
“Dreams really can come true,’’ he said.
The sticker price on the dream is $350 million. That stadium cost is wrapped into the $1.3 billion cost for a mixed-use development of retail, office space and a public park over 135 acres of the former Melreese Golf Course.
MLS Commissioner Don Garber attended Saturday’s game called the finished stadium, “Breathtaking.” But it signaled how the most popular team in the league now had the permanent home it wanted.
“David shined a light on our league, and Leo’s taking that torch and showing it around,’’ Garber said. “We’re getting calls from players around the world.”
It is a nice, modern bandbox of a soccer stadium – or will be when fully completed. Just a month ago, Garber wasn’t sure they’d get to the starting line in shape like Saturday night. Fences still block off unfinished areas under the stadium. Tarred road through the grounds were laid down last.
But Saturday’s game was the kind of event South Florida turns out for and the cheapest ticket an hour before game cost $338 on Ticketmaster. Hundreds of fans rode the Tri-Rail from Broward, walking the final 10 minutes to the stadium.
Will Inter Miami have to re-invent some of its fan base with the move south? Maybe. But nothing sells better than winning, and that’s where the conversation pointed to at the end of the night. Mascherano talked of formations and technique before ultimately saying his team might’ve been too caught up in the event in the first half.
“We didn’t come into the match right,’’ he said. “I hope it doesn’t happen again. We gave them a lot of chances.”
If Suarez’s goal counts at the end, it would have been the scripted finish for the stadium opener. As it was, the stadium and Messi’s goal carried the night just fine.
Fans line up outside of the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Luis Suárez (9)) celebrates his goal during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Jose Was, Jorge Was, and David Beckham cut the ribbon at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) celebrates his goal with fans during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Singer Marc Anthony talks with David Beckham before singing the National Anthem at the Inter Miami CF inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Marc Anthony sings the National Anthem at the Inter Miami CF inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) David Beckham looks up at the stadium before he Inter Miami CF inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) takes the field during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi goes up against Austin FC during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium on Saturday. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Jennifer Bravo holds Brianna Estrada, 10-months-old, at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF midfielder David Ayala (22) battles Austin FC midfielder Joseph Rosales (30) during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Fans line up and cheer outside of the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) goes up against Austin FC during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Luis Suárez (9)) celebrates his goal with Inter Miami CF defender Maximiliano Falcón (37) during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) lays on the ground as Austin FC midfielder Nicolás Dubersarsky (20) objects to a call during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF defender Maximiliano Falcón (37) is frustrated after missing a goal during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Fans get ready as the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami Nu Stadium opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami Nu Stadium opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami Nu Stadium opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Show Caption1 of 21Inter Miami CF celebrates the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel)Expand
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Meanwhile, the only star whose show wasn’t choreographed waited. Lionel Messi’s name was already in lights on a stadium so unfinished that a permit to play Saturday’s game against Austin FC was just acquired Friday.
“Leo Messi Stand,” was a priority. It was finished and polished, a midfield section of seats bookended by his No. 10.
And so when Messi came flying through the middle of the penalty box early in the game and headed in a tying goal against Austin it meant a good night was on the way to being complete. That’s the moment this stadium really needed to open, Messi’s seal of approval.
The happiest beginning was offered, too. Luis Suarez, who scored in the 82nd minute, took the rebound of Messi’s free kick in the 90th minute and scored the would-be winning goal. But it was waved off for offsides and the night ended 2-2.
“We could’ve been better,’’ coach Javier Mascherano said.
Thus began Inter Miami moving to Miami after five years in Fort Lauderdale. Sort of. The team still trains in Fort Lauderdale, meaning its facilities and most players’ homes remain in Broward and Palm Beach.
It just plays games in Miami now, like the geographical reverse of the University of Miami football team training south in Coral Gables and playing further north at Hard Rock Stadium.
“We’re finally home,’’ team owner Jorge Mas said in Spanish before the game to the sold-out crowd of 26,700.
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He’s a Miami guy, who wanted his team in Miami, and spent eight years making it happen. Beckham started on the case 13 years ago when he claimed Miami as the team he would be part-owner in as his MLS contract allowed.
“We had no name,’’ Beckham said to before Saturday’s game. “We had no fans. We had no stadium. Today, I stand in our new home, we are champions of the MLS and we have the best player in the game playing here in Miami.
He looked at the scene before him.
“Dreams really can come true,’’ he said.
The sticker price on the dream is $350 million. That stadium cost is wrapped into the $1.3 billion cost for a mixed-use development of retail, office space and a public park over 135 acres of the former Melreese Golf Course.
MLS Commissioner Don Garber attended Saturday’s game called the finished stadium, “Breathtaking.” But it signaled how the most popular team in the league now had the permanent home it wanted.
“David shined a light on our league, and Leo’s taking that torch and showing it around,’’ Garber said. “We’re getting calls from players around the world.”
It is a nice, modern bandbox of a soccer stadium – or will be when fully completed. Just a month ago, Garber wasn’t sure they’d get to the starting line in shape like Saturday night. Fences still block off unfinished areas under the stadium. Tarred road through the grounds were laid down last.
But Saturday’s game was the kind of event South Florida turns out for and the cheapest ticket an hour before game cost $338 on Ticketmaster. Hundreds of fans rode the Tri-Rail from Broward, walking the final 10 minutes to the stadium.
Will Inter Miami have to re-invent some of its fan base with the move south? Maybe. But nothing sells better than winning, and that’s where the conversation pointed to at the end of the night. Mascherano talked of formations and technique before ultimately saying his team might’ve been too caught up in the event in the first half.
“We didn’t come into the match right,’’ he said. “I hope it doesn’t happen again. We gave them a lot of chances.”
If Suarez’s goal counts at the end, it would have been the scripted finish for the stadium opener. As it was, the stadium and Messi’s goal carried the night just fine.
Fans line up outside of the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Luis Suárez (9)) celebrates his goal during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Jose Was, Jorge Was, and David Beckham cut the ribbon at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) celebrates his goal with fans during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Singer Marc Anthony talks with David Beckham before singing the National Anthem at the Inter Miami CF inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Marc Anthony sings the National Anthem at the Inter Miami CF inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) David Beckham looks up at the stadium before he Inter Miami CF inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) takes the field during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi goes up against Austin FC during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium on Saturday. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Jennifer Bravo holds Brianna Estrada, 10-months-old, at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF midfielder David Ayala (22) battles Austin FC midfielder Joseph Rosales (30) during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Fans line up and cheer outside of the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) goes up against Austin FC during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Luis Suárez (9)) celebrates his goal with Inter Miami CF defender Maximiliano Falcón (37) during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) lays on the ground as Austin FC midfielder Nicolás Dubersarsky (20) objects to a call during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami CF defender Maximiliano Falcón (37) is frustrated after missing a goal during the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Fans get ready as the Inter Miami Nu Stadium as it opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami Nu Stadium opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami Nu Stadium opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Inter Miami Nu Stadium opens for the inaugural game on Saturday April 4, 2026. Inter Miami plays their first game against Austin FC in Nu Stadium, in Miami's Freedom Park. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Show Caption1 of 21Inter Miami CF celebrates the inaugural game at the Inter Miami Nu Stadium against Austin FC on Saturday April 4, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel)Expand
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